U.S. Department of Transportation Identification of High-Speed Rail Ballast Flight Federal Railroad Risk Factors and Risk Mitigation Strategies – Administration Final Report Office of Research, Development, and Technology Washington, DC 20590 DOT/FRA/ORD-15/32 April 2015 NOTICE This document is disseminated under the sponsorship of the Department of Transportation in the interest of information exchange. The United States Government assumes no liability for its contents or use thereof. Any opinions, findings and conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the United States Government, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the United States Government. The United States Government assumes no liability for the content or use of the material contained in this document. NOTICE The United States Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. 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REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED April 2015 Technical Report – July 2014 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS Identification of High-Speed Rail Ballast Flight Risk Factors and Risk Mitigation Strategies 6. AUTHOR(S) M.R. Saat, F. Bedini-Jacobini, E. Tutumluer, C.P.L. Barkan 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign REPORT NUMBER Rail Transportation and Engineering Center – RailTEC Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering 205 N. Mathews Ave DOT/FRA/BAA-2010-1 Urbana, IL 61801 9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSORING/MONITORING U.S. Department of Transportation AGENCY REPORT NUMBER Federal Railroad Administration Office of Railroad Policy and Development DOT/FRA/ORD-15/32 Office of Research, Development, and Technology Washington, DC 20590 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES COR: Cameron Stuart 12a. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE This document is available to the public through the FRA Web site at http://www.fra.dot.gov. 13. ABSTRACT (Maximum 200 words) The phenomenon of flying ballast is well-documented in high-speed rail operations. Displaced ballast particles from the track bed may cause damage to rolling stock as well as the track infrastructure, and wayside structures close to the right of way of the railroad. This report provides comprehensive information to help identify potential causes and hazard consequences of ballast flight, determine potential risk mitigation strategies, and define the relevance of ballast flight risks in the current and planned U.S. passenger rail system. This report presents and discusses a conceptual risk framework, which covers factors that contribute to flying ballast and the consequences of flying ballast based on the location of interest. Five relevant risk factors for flying ballast are identified: operating speed, train design, dynamic load, track maintenance, and high winds. 14. SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF PAGES 76 Ballast flight, high-speed rail, intercity passenger rail 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 19. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 20. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT OF REPORT OF THIS PAGE OF ABSTRACT Unclassified Unclassified Unclassified i METRIC/ENGLISH CONVERSION FACTORS ENGLISH TO METRIC METRIC TO ENGLISH LENGTH (APPROXIMATE) LENGTH (APPROXIMATE) 1 inch (in) = 2.5 centimeters (cm) 1 millimeter (mm) = 0.04 inch (in) 1 foot (ft) = 30 centimeters (cm) 1 centimeter (cm) = 0.4 inch (in) 1 yard (yd) = 0.9 meter (m) 1 meter (m) = 3.3 feet (ft) 1 mile (mi) = 1.6 kilometers (km) 1 meter (m) = 1.1 yards (yd) 1 kilometer (km) = 0.6 mile (mi) AREA (APPROXIMATE) AREA (APPROXIMATE) 1 square inch (sq in, in2) = 6.5 square centimeters 1 square centimeter (cm2) = 0.16 square inch (sq in, in2) (cm2) 1 square foot (sq ft, ft2) = 0.09 square meter (m2) 1 square meter (m2) = 1.2 square yards (sq yd, yd2) 1 square yard (sq yd, yd2) = 0.8 square meter (m2) 1 square kilometer (km2) = 0.4 square mile (sq mi, mi2) 1 square mile (sq mi, mi2) = 2.6 square kilometers (km2) 10,000 square meters = 1 hectare (ha) = 2.5 acres (m2) 1 acre = 0.4 hectare (he) = 4,000 square meters (m2) MASS - WEIGHT (APPROXIMATE) MASS - WEIGHT (APPROXIMATE) 1 ounce (oz) = 28 grams (gm) 1 gram (gm) = 0.036 ounce (oz) 1 pound (lb) = 0.45 kilogram (kg) 1 kilogram (kg) = 2.2 pounds (lb) 1 short ton = 2,000 pounds = 0.9 tonne (t) 1 tonne (t) = 1,000 kilograms (kg) (lb) = 1.1 short tons VOLUME (APPROXIMATE) VOLUME (APPROXIMATE) 1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5 milliliters (ml) 1 milliliter (ml) = 0.03 fluid ounce (fl oz) 1 tablespoon (tbsp) = 15 milliliters (ml) 1 liter (l) = 2.1 pints (pt) 1 fluid ounce (fl oz) = 30 milliliters (ml) 1 liter (l) = 1.06 quarts (qt) 1 cup (c) = 0.24 liter (l) 1 liter (l) = 0.26 gallon (gal) 1 pint (pt) = 0.47 liter (l) 1 quart (qt) = 0.96 liter (l) 1 gallon (gal) = 3.8 liters (l) 1 cubic foot (cu ft, ft3) = 0.03 cubic meter (m3) 1 cubic meter (m3) = 36 cubic feet (cu ft, ft3) 1 cubic yard (cu yd, yd3) = 0.76 cubic meter (m3) 1 cubic meter (m3) = 1.3 cubic yards (cu yd, yd3) TEMPERATURE (EXACT) TEMPERATURE (EXACT) [(x-32)(5/9)] = y C [(9/5) y + 32] = x F QUICK INCH - CENTIMETER LENGTH CONVERSION 0 1 2 3 4 5 Inches Centimeters 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 QUICK FAHRENHEIT - CELSIUS TEMPERATURE CONVERSION °F -40° -22° -4° 14° 32° 50° 68° 86° 104° 122° 140° 158° 176° 194° 212° °C -40° -30° -20° -10° 0° 10° 20° 30° 40° 50° 60° 70° 80° 90° 100° For more exact and or other conversion factors, see NIST Miscellaneous Publication 286, Units of Weights and Measures. Price $2.50 SD Catalog No. C13 10286 Updated 6/17/98 ii Table of Contents Table of Contents ............................................................................................................. iii List of Figures ................................................................................................................... iv List of Tables .................................................................................................................... vi Preface .............................................................................................................................. vii 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 2 Literature Review ...................................................................................................... 2 2.1 Relevant Major Research Programs ............................................................................ 2 2.2 Track Responses ............................................................................................................. 2 2.3 Train Aerodynamics .................................................................................................... 12 2.4 Atmospheric or Weather Conditions ......................................................................... 19 2.5 Ground Effect Conditions ........................................................................................... 21 2.6 Field Tests ..................................................................................................................... 22 2.7 Risk Based Models ....................................................................................................... 29 2.8 Other Studies ................................................................................................................ 34 3 Risk Framework, Factors, and Mitigation Strategies .......................................... 36 3.1 Risk Framework ........................................................................................................... 36 3.2 Risk Factors .................................................................................................................. 37 3.2.1 Train Aerodynamics ............................................................................................... 37 3.2.2 Track Responses .................................................................................................... 38 3.2.3 Ground Effects ....................................................................................................... 39 3.2.4 Atmospheric Conditions ........................................................................................ 40 3.2.5 Risk Prioritization .................................................................................................. 40 3.3 Consequences of Ballast Flight ................................................................................... 42 3.4 Risk Mitigation Strategies ..........................................................................................